© Copyright khedmeh Wall
Philippine conglomerate Alliance Global Group Inc says it has agreed to acquire the stake of now-defunct Genting Hong Kong Ltd in the operator of Newport World Resorts (pictured), a Philippine casino and leisure complex in the capital Manila.
The property is owned and managed by Travellers International Hotel Group Inc. Prior to the deal now announced, Alliance Global already had a 60-percent stake in Travellers International, according to its latest quarterly report.
Alliance Global said in a filing on Tuesday to the Philippine Stock Exchange that its subsidiary Newport World Resorts Properties Inc had “entered into a share purchase agreement for the acquisition of the shares” in Travellers International owned by three entities linked to Genting Hong Kong.
“Upon completion of the foregoing transactions, Genting Hong Kong will cease to hold a stake” in Travellers International, stated the filing.
It did not disclose any financial details of the agreement.
Newport World Resorts chief operating officer Hakan Dagtas had that Alliance Global was in the process of acquiring Genting Hong Kong’s stake in Travellers International. He added at the time that the deal was awaiting regulatory approvals, and was expected to be concluded by the end of the current quarter.
From the time of its launch in 2009, Newport World Resorts had been known as Resorts World Manila, with Genting Hong Kong having been a founding partner. The site was as Newport World Resorts.
‘Resorts World’ is a branding that has been commonly used by casino venues across the world that are run by the Genting marque, from Malaysia to Singapore, the United Kingdom or the United States.
Genting Hong Kong – formerly specialising in casino cruise ship operations – , and its own shares in mid-May from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Travellers International’s first-quarter 2023 overall revenues year-on-year, to PHP7.90 billion (US$140.0 million). First-quarter gross gaming revenue increased by 36.2 percent during the period, to just above PHP8.89 billion, said a filing by Alliance Global earlier this month.
The casino licence for The Star Sydney property (pictured) will remain suspended, with its operator hit with a AUD15-million (US$10.1 million) fine for ongoing compliance problems and a fresh review within the first quarter next year.
That is according to an announcement on Thursday by Philip Crawford, chief commissioner of the New South Wales Independent Casino Commission, a regulatory authority in that Australian state. He said a fresh assessment would be made by March 31.
Mr Crawford was speaking at a media conference, as reported by public broadcaster the ABC.
The Star Sydney, a property of The Star Entertainment Group Ltd, had been subject to two inquiry processes headed by lawyer Adam Bell, which identified compliance and governance failures.
The company’s licence for its Sydney casino had been suspended “indefinitely” from October 21, 2022, and placed under state-government supervision. The firm had also been fined AUD100 million by the New South Wales authorities.
In his Thursday comments, Mr Crawford said governance at the group had improved since the appointment of a new chief executive.
In late June it had been announced that Steve McCann was becoming group chief executive and managing director, with effect from July 8.
Mr McCann previously served as the group CEO and managing director of rival Australian casino operator Crown Resorts Ltd.
The ABC cited Mr Crawford as saying on Thursday: “If Sydney Star fails, the Star group will fail and that’s a group that employs 9,000-plus people, and if you add onto that the huge number of suppliers to the business, it would effect the lives of a lot of people.”
He added: “It would be a very, very final act to take the licence away, particularly given the current economic times.”
A trading halt for The Star Entertainment’s shares – at the request of the company – had been called on the Australian Securities Exchange at 7.25am Sydney time on Thursday, “pending it releasing an announcement,” the group said.
The Star Entertainment also holds gaming licences in the state of Queensland, where it launched on August 29 The Star Brisbane, a new casino resort that is part of the AUD3.6-billion Queen’s Wharf Brisbane.
Australian casino operator The Star Entertainment Group Ltd says it is working with “various” financial advisers to review its financial and liquidity position, as well to finalise its annual results for the financial year ended June 30.
The casino firm, which remains under scrutiny from regulators over corporate cultural and governance issues, said in a Wednesday filing that it is “holding discussions with various stakeholders in relation to its liquidity position in light of adverse trading and other conditions”.
“The company confirms that the advice being provided has extended, from time to time, to considering the application of provisions of the Corporations Act 2001, including the safe harbour provisions,” stated Star Entertainment.
It added: “The company is working to finalise its financial year 2024 preliminary financial report, although the timing of its release has not been finalised.”
Australia’s safe harbour insolvency regime protects directors from personal liability for insolvent trading while undertaking a restructuring to improve the firm’s financial standing.
Trading in the company’s shares in the Australian Securities Exchange was halted on Friday. On Monday (September 2), trading in the firm’s shares was suspended because the Star Entertainment did not lodge its financial results by the due date.
The Australian Financial Review reported on Wednesday that lenders were “pushing back” against the casino operator’s request for more short-term debt. Citing anonymous sources with direct knowledge of discussions, the outlet said the banks want any new loan to be matched by government concessions and increased security over assets, including properties.
The company’s licence for its flagship Sydney casino (pictured), in New South Wales, was suspended “indefinitely” from October 2022, and placed under state-government supervision.
A report following a second probe into the corporate culture of Star Entertainment, released last week, stated that the company remains unsuitable to hold a casino licence in that Australian state.
The investigation was commissioned by the state’s casino regulator, the New South Wales Independent Casino Commission (NICC), over concerns that Star Entertainment had not adequately committed to cultural reform since it was exposed for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism failings in 2021.
The group’s licences for its casinos in the state of Queensland were also suspended in December 2022, and placed under state-government supervision.
The firm’s Treasury Brisbane casino shut down last week, ahead of the launch on August 29 of The Star Brisbane, a new casino resort that is part of the AUD3.6-billion (US$2.5-billion) Queen’s Wharf Brisbane, in Queensland.
In May, the company confirmed receiving “inbound interest from a number of external parties” regarding potential investment in the firm. But it said at the time that “none of the approaches” had “resulted in substantive discussions”.
https://www.casinositezone.com/